Lady of Avalon (Avalon, Book 3) (Paperback)

by Marion Zimmer Bradley (Author), John Jude Palencar (Illustrator), Diana L. Paxson (Collaborator) "Caillean-High Priestess..." (more)
Key Phrases: marsh folk, marsh men, holy isle, Lady of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Father Joseph (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
This three-part fantasy, set in Roman-occupied Britain, creates the link between The Forest House and The Mists of Avalon and should satisfy fans of both those books. Spanning almost 400 years, it tells the stories of the high priestesses and ladies of Avalon. Recommended for fantasy collections.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist
Bradley's sensational Arthurian fantasy, The Mists of Avalon (1982), could never have a sequel, not if Bradley wanted to keep women's power as the main theme, because after Camelot, you will recall, things went steadily downhill. So she retreated and wrote The Forest House (1994), a prequel about the struggle between native Celts and invading Romans in Avalon's home world. This sequel to House and prequel to Mists is set close enough to Arthurian times for such important figures as Merlin and Vivianne to appear, yet far enough before them to allow Bradley's imagination ample scope. In it, three characters capable of reincarnation--a priestess, a mother, and a son--appear in similar relationships in episodes set at the turn of the first to the second century A.D., the end of the third century, and the middle of the fifth century. In each time, Avalon is threatened; the mystic isle survives, of course, but only through sacrifice. Bradley's women are, as usual, strong and vibrant, but never before has she so effectively depicted the heroic male. Expect strong demand for this installment of an immensely popular saga; Viking does, to the tune of a 150,000-copy first printing. Patricia Monaghan --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Roc Trade (June 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451456521
• ISBN-13: 978-0451456526
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #85,008 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #2 in	Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( P ) > Paxson, Diana
  #14 in	Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( B ) > Bradley, Marion Zimmer
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not as Compelling as Mists, September 8, 2004

By	Diana F. Von Behren "reneofc" (Kenner, LA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

When I read the Mists of Avalon a few years ago I was mesmerized. A huge tome of over a 1000 pages, this earlier novel relates the story of Arthur and his Camelot from the perspective of the three women closest in his life: his mother Ygraine, his sister, Morgaine and his wife, Guinevere. believe me this is a novel to be savored and reread many times. That being said, I was excited when Zimmer Bradley came out with her two prequels, firstly, "The Forest House" and "Lady of Avalon". Sadly, neither of these two books are worthy enough to complete a trilogy, but if you, like myself, were intigued by the idea of a closed society of people using magic to effect the early history of Britain, you will also grudgingly like these.
"Lady of Avalon" starts off where "Forest House" left off. In order to span the gulf between the time sequence of Forest House and Mists of Avalon, Bradley scrambles a bit and tells the story of three different generations of Avalon high priestesses. How disappointing . . . each of these vignettes would have made a wonderful more fully fleshed out novel of its own. Granted, each of the women are strong and they all have their particular mission with regard to Avalon with respect to the outside world. However detailed certain acts of magic are within storyline, Zimmer Bradley's own sparkling brand of magic so evident in "Mists" is unfortunately missing. But one postive note: however disappointing this trilogy of tales is, it still continues the tradion of Zimmer Bradley's brainchild and it is supremely better than Diana Paxson's sequel called "Priestess of Avalon" which cannot hold a candle to Zimmer Bradley's work.
I both read the book and listened to the audio performance; the abridged version leaves far too much out to be considered serious.
Recommended to all those who simply love Zimmer Bradley's interpretation of the Arthurian tales and must have more.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eloquent display of the cycle of life, July 18, 2006

By	Monarch (San Fran Bay area, California) - See all my reviews

Lady of Avalon is actually 3 books in one. Each part is a separate story, yet they are all interwoven in the Pagan idea of the life cycle, and reincarnation.

The first section is called "The Wisewoman" and takes place from 96AD to 118AD. This is mostly Caillean's story as left off in "The Forest House" including the rest of the life of Eilan's son, Gawen. This story also reveals how and why Avalon came to have it's infamous "mists" and different time tract.

The second section is called "The High Priestess" and takes place from 285AD to 293AD. This is mostly Dierna's story picking up from the story line started in the book "Priestess of Avalon." I would personally recommend reading "Priestess of Avalon" between reading the first and second parts of this book, if one wishes to read the stories in chronological order.

Part 3 is called "Daughter of Avalon" and takes place from 440AD to 452AD. This is mostly Vivianne's story, which directly leads in to "The Mists of Avalon." Although I thoroughly enjoyed the story that was presented, I was wanting even more. I felt it ended a little too early with a larger gap in time from the end of this to the start of "The Mists" than I would prefer. This story is VERY insightful to the character of Vivianne, and gives much more understanding of her actions carried out in "The Mists of Avalon." As with all the stories in the series, it was very spiritual. The desription of what Vivianne felt and thought as she went to part the mists for the first time was moving.

The books preceeding this one in the series are: "The Fall of Atlantis," "Ancestors of Avalon," and "The Forest House."

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I am torn between loyalty and personal views..., March 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Lady of Avalon (Hardcover)

I have read Mists, Forest House, and Atlantis. I am currently in the process of finishing this, "Lady of Avalon"-- what I consider to be the fourth installment of Bradley's tale of Druidic religion, and can say fairly that I am truly torn. I am enjoying the book, I purchased it 4 days ago and am on chapter 21 or 22. From her first two books, because truly Atlantis sets the stage for the Druids who are to come, I feel that she has not allowed herself the time to develop her characters fully.

With Atlantis we see the depth of conviction that the priests and priestesses have for their religion, and the spiral of lives that may come forth beause of their rebellion; in Mists we see one of those very incarnations (which is why If you've read Mists and not Atlantis you REALLY should Atlantis); the Forest House allows the reader to find out how the priestesses came to Avalon, while Lady explains how Avalon went into the mists. The whole story of Gawen could have taken a book in itself, and seemed rushed so that she could continue on with her storycraft. I believe that each section could have been larger, had I known so much history would be condensed into this installment, I would have expected to see it the size of Mists, not barely larger than Forest House.

My loyalty to Ms. Bradley and her first two installments leads me to believe that after finishing Lady and reflecting, I will like it emmensely. I am enjoying it--I would have enjoyed it far more had it seemed that she put the time into this as she had in Mists. By time I mean covering things more in depth, giving the reader time to become more involved with the characters. We know two of the charatcers from other books, Eilan and Vivianne. I like the book, and if you are an avid follower of Ms. Bradley's Arthurian tale I highly recommend it. Perhaps her brevity in this installment will allow her to expand on certain events or characters in later installments.